Tuesday, September 1, 2015

First "Temporary" Exhibit Opens

Our new space for "temporary" exhibits became a reality today. Our goal is to use an area in the lobby of the Prairie Museum of Art & History to showcase groups of items from our own collection, but also to make this space available for members of the community to exhibit items they collect as well. The lighted case has exhibit space approximately 5 feet high, 4 feet wide, and 2 feet deep. 

If you have a collection you would like to put on temporary exhibit in this space, please come in and visit with Ray to schedule your show or call 785-460-4590. We hope to change exhibits on a monthly basis. Since the exhibit is in the lobby, there is no admission to see it. 


Toothpick Holders

Our first temporary exhibit is a collection of toothpick holders accumulated by Olive (Lewallen) Pridemore. This collection of over 130 toothpick holders includes those made of wood, ceramics, metal, and glass. Many are souvenirs of her extensive travels. Her entire collection was donated to Prairie Museum of Art & History in 1999.

 (Click photos to enlarge)

 Some are colorful pieces of art.

 Some are whimsical.

Others are souvenirs of places visited.

About the Collector

Olive Marie Pridemore was born in Colby, Kansas to Elmer W. and Lois A. (Hamill) Lewallen. She was a 1931 Colby High School graduate.

After high school she entered Halstead Hospital School of Nursing, graduating in 1936. She met her husband Bernice Pridemore while working at a hospital in Lamar, Colorado

They moved to Colby in 1951 where Olive worked at St. Thomas Hospital for a short time before going to work in the office of Dr. George Marshall until 1961. She and her husband traveled visiting 38 states, Mexico, and Canada. In 1973 she accepted the position of Home Health Nurse. She eventually became head of the Thomas County Health Department. She retired in 1980 and continued traveling making trips to Alaska and Hawaii.

Olive's many hobbies included crocheting, knitting, quilting, ceramics, reading, playing bingo, and watching baseball.
 

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